Coca-Cola “Spirit of the Euro”

In “Spirit of the Euro,” director Carlos Lascano and Bent Image Lab crafted a madcap romp through a cast of zany characters for Coke and agency Santo.

Carlos explains one of the challenges in producing the spot:

My proposal was technically very demanding, since it required the use of real eyes on 3D characters with massive head rotations and a wide range of expressions …

There is a saying that goes that eyes are windows to the soul. Well, by using real eyes I am not only animating these characters, I am also providing them with a soul. This technique that I have been developing for the last few years gives me the chance to work with actors and the intention of their gestures. There is a wide range of small ocular moves that cannot be achieved in animation.

Some technical details from Bent Image Lab:

Bent’s CG team, using 3D Studio Max, supplied tracking markers for the character eyes to the compositing department. The pre planning was extensive. Halfway through production, (after blocking the animation) the live action eyes were shot, selected and locked. Using this tracking data, Lascano applied the eyes of his choosing to each CG character using After Effects.

Thereafter, the animators worked with the eyes to add subtle facial expressions to achieve the performance that Lascano was after. Then, using both After Effects and Nuke, the compositors incorporated the eye comps and CG animation into the finished cinema 3D stereo production.